Fusion form

White Lotus－Black Sand is a collaborative production by the Rhythmosaic-Sengupta Dance Company and Beijing Dance/LDTX. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Dutt, who is an experienced curator of the arts, got to know Sengupta and Ghose about a decade ago and offered them their first break onstage in India.

"Sengupta has had strong training in Indian classical dance from a very young age and Ghose has been trained in jazz, classical ballet and modern dance," Dutt says, adding that the couple are open to fusion of traditional and contemporary dance moves, which made their experiment with a Chinese modern dance company possible.

In 2014, Dutt came to Beijing along with the couple and dancers from the Rhythmosaic-Sengupta Dance Company to perform at the Beijing Dance Festival, an annual event launched by Tsao in 2008 to promote modern dance in the Chinese capital by bringing international contemporary dance troupes here as well as showcasing local talents.

According to Sengupta, it was her company's first trip to China and the first time for an Indian dance company to perform at the festival. The program they presented was titled Desolate - The Voices of the Trapped, which blends kathak with contemporary dance.

"We were impressed by the young Chinese dancers' techniques and along with Willy Tsao, we developed the idea of producing a dance piece to celebrate the diversity of both countries, which is based on the languages of kathak and contemporary dance forms," says Sengupta.